$^3P_2$ Superfluids Are Topological [CL]

http://arxiv.org/abs/1607.07266


We clarify the topology of the $^3P_2$ superfluidity which is expected to be realized in the cores of neutron stars and cubic odd-parity superconductors. The phase diagram includes the unitary uniaxial/biaxial nematic phases and nonunitary ferromagnetic and cyclic phases. We here show that the low-energy structures of all the phases are governed by different types of topologically protected gapless fermionic excitations: Surface Majorana fermions in nematic phases, single itinerant Majorana fermion in the ferromagnetic phase, and a quartet of itinerant Majorana fermions in the cyclic phase. Using the superfluid Fermi liquid theory, we also demonstrate that dihedral-two and -four biaxial nematic phases are thermodynamically favored in the weak coupling limit under a magnetic field. The mass acquisition of surface Majorana fermions in nematic phases is subject to symmetry.

Read this paper on arXiv…

T. Mizushima, K. Masuda and M. Nitta
Tue, 2 Aug 16
54/80

Comments: 6 pages, 3 figures + 6 pages, 2 figures (supplementary material)